The Capital Area Food Bank is currently in need of volunteers for this Friday, January 6 from 1 – 4 pm; and Saturday, January 7 from 9 – 12 am.  We are looking for individuals or large groups to help pack bags for our Kids Cafe and Weekend Bag Programs. 

If you are still on vacation or just looking for a way to get involved in the community, please click here for more information.

The food bank always needs volunteers.  So the next time your school, organization, businesss or church is looking for a community service activity, stop by the food bank and donate your time.

The highlight of my work came on Thanksgiving Eve – a time when seniors and young people lined up to receive a meal, a bag of food and a turkey at the food bank’s D.C. warehouse. I helped coordinate the distribution of all the food. Folks were already in good spirits to receive the bounty of food, however, when they encountered a surprise visit from President Obama, their excitement could hardly be contained. It was a real joy seeing faces brighten up upon meeting our nation’s leader. It was truly a special moment.

After it was over, the feedback I received was touching. One of the attendees commented that an older family member, who is a member of Refreshing Springs Church, called him after the Thanksgiving giveaway and told him she had just met the President and his family. He said that the woman is normally very quiet but it “warmed his heart” to hear her go on about “being fed, getting a turkey and trimmings and meeting President Obama.” This was probably the typical reaction of the majority of seniors that visited the food bank on that special day.

This first year has been outstanding. I am proud to have the privilege to work with great volunteers and staff at the Capital Area Food Bank. I look forward to year two as we move to into our new facility and expand our outreach and services.

From a volunteer perspective: blog post written by Jay Landreth, Volunteer with the Capital Area Food Bank:

These Caps fans were feeling loose because of the Thanksgiving Holiday.

Thousands of pounds of food walked into the  Verizon Center destined for distribution to individuals who were unemployed, under-employed, homeless, struggling to keep their homes and struggling to keep their heads above water.  Those fans brought plastic bags filled with cans on the Metro with them.  Women pulled cans of food out of purses.  Cans of yams and boxes of mac and cheese came out of jacket pockets.  Cans of tuna, jars of applesauce, peanut butter and an assortment of single-serving foods filled box after box at the entryway doors.

We were stationed by the door to take food donations.  We held orange buckets out to receive cash donations from people who forgot to bring a can, but wanted to help the Capital Area Food Bank feed people in need of assistance.

These Caps fans stepped up and donated generously.

Loose change.  Quarters, dimes, nickels and 31 pennies.  A total of $1,634.81 was collected, of which $19.81 was in coins.

I handed out brochures to alot of people saying that the food bank can turn ONE DOLLAR into THREE MEALS.  I believe that.  I’ve seen it done.  I have seen the beneficiaries of it.

Until that night, I hadn’t seen people dig to the bottom of their pocket for change.  I mean, the BOTTOM of their pocket.  That’s where the pennies get stuck.

So, those 31 pennies?  That was a meal.  Doesn’t sound like much does it?  Really?  Ever miss a meal?  Ever been in a position where you don’t know where your next meal is coming from?  I don’t mean deciding where to go eat, I mean not having a clue whether there is a meal in your future.

Caps fans believe that the Capital Area Food Bank helps feed thousands of people in the metro region every day.  They do it with food drawn from many different resources and processed by people, paid and unpaid, who care about people who face chronic hunger.  People who want to help others less fortunate than themselves.  People who dig deep, to the very bottom of their pockets, to make sure there is enough for one more meal for someone who needs it.

Thank you for supporting the Capital Area Food Bank and more importantly those struggling to get enough food to eat. 

Join the Capital Area Food Bank for one of our largest food drives of the year – Stuff-A-Truck.  We are teaming up again with Fox 5, Giant and local CBS radio stations to collect non-perishable food at  four Giant store locations across the Washington metro region.  Come out anytime between 6am and 11:30 pm on Friday, December 2nd to show your support and holiday spirit.

Locations:

• Brentwood Giant (1050 Brentwood Rd, NE Washington, DC 20018
• PG Plaza Giant (3521 East West Highway, Hyattsville, MD 20782)
• Montrose Crossing Giant (12051 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852)
• Greenbriar Giant (13043 Lee Jackson Hwy. Fairfax, VA 22033)

Click here to view our most wanted items. 

Thank you to all of our sponsors!

Giant, Fox 5, WPGC-FM, 94.7 Fresh FM, WJFK, El Zol, YRCI, USA Party Rental, A Grand Event and A&A Rental Station.

Check out the experience of volunteering below in a video made entirely by our volunteers!

The Capital Area Food Bank has many different volunteer opportunities available to you. Many tasks require only a willingness to learn and work with others. We make every effort to incorporate all willing volunteers regardless of skill level. Please register and find a time on our calendar that works for you.

Governor McDonnell packs bags for seniors in need.

The Capital Area Food Bank recently teamed up with The Virginia Federation of Food Banks to bring Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and Virginia State Delegate Mark D. Sickles to CAFB partner agency ALIVE Inc. in Alexandria, Virginia. 

The Governor and Delegate Sickles volunteered packing food as a part of the state wide legislator volunteer day for Hunger Action Month.  This visit gave the Capital Area Food Bank and ALIVE Executive Director Ken Nasar the opportunity to educate the Governor on hunger problems in the State of Virginia, while he packed  groceries for seniors in need.

Virginia State Delegate Mark Sickles lends a helping hand.

The Governor expressed gratitude to The Capital Area Food Bank and its partner agency ALIVE Inc. for helping residents in need in Northern Virginia.  The Capital Area Food Bank is thankful to Governor McDonnell for visiting Northern Virginia to learn about hunger.

If you or someone you know is in need of food please call 202-526-5344 and ask for the Hunger Life Line.

The Capital Area Food Bank, along with many other organizations, is spreading the word about free summer meals.  Last Friday, the food bank partnered with Latin America Youth Center to canvass neighborhoods in Capitol Heights and Seat Pleasant, Maryland.  Part of the group also handed out resources at a Mobile Food Pantry distribution.  The teens from LAYC distributed over 1,500 door hangers and fliers, sharing information about how to find summer meals as well as information about SNAP benefits.

Help us make sure that this summer is fun for everyone.  Join us in getting the word out about where kids can eat for free this summer!  Distribute fliers in your community to anyone who has children or works with children who may be at risk of hunger.  Contact Kendra Rowe Salas at rowesalask@capitalareafoodbank.org for additional outreach materials that you can use this summer.  With 200,000 children and teens at risk of hunger in the D.C. metro area, this information is essential!

For the past three years, the Washington Nationals have partnered with the Capital Area Food Bank to organize food drives during the summer months when our food  donations are typically slow.  But not only do they assist in donating food, the Nats team players put the food where their mouth is and donate their time by volunteering in the warehouse!

Recently, Ryan Mattheus, pitcher for the Nationals, visited the food bank along with Harris Teeter team members – Ronnie Cash, Bob Smith, Duanne Inskeep, Renne Kifus, Chris Pyne, and CAFB Board Member Dan Marett – to help pack bags for our Weekend Bag Program. 

We even had a surprise visit from Harry the Happy Dragon, Harris Teeter’s mascot!

Ryan and the Harris Teeter team helped to pack 500 Weekend Bags that were distributed to Kids Cafe sites in the DC Metro area.  The Weekend Bag program is a national program of Feeding America ,where we work with partner sites to distribute bags of food to youth for the weekend.  We send 5-7 pounds of food including breakfast, lunch/supper and snack items, as well as a mix of the food groups.  The bags have kid-friendly items and items that a parent or caretaker is able to prepare.

We thank The Washington Nationals, Ryan Mattheaus and Harris Teeter for thier commitment to serving the individuals in our community and look forward to hosting them again next year!

It’s a good feeling when hometown athletes return to their community, but it’s a great feeling when they take time to volunteer. 

New Orleans Saints Free Safety Usama Young stopped by the food bank this past Thursday, along with a group of over 30 high-school students, to sort food and pack bags.  During his visit, he also took time to walk around the warehouse to talk with individual staff; and even signed a few autographs.  He was very personable and engaged. 

Young is in town for his annual Stay Focused Football & Cheer Camp, which is a part of his youth foundation, and includes a series of events for families and youth.  His foundation is based here in the Washington metro region and Orleans Parish in Louisiana, and offers various programs to children from single-parent homes and underserved communities.

We are thankful to Young and the Prince George’s County Public School Students for volunteering their time. 

If you are interested in volunteering at the Capital Area Food Bank, please click here. 

Talking about a player who gives back!

Super Bowl 44 Champion Usama Young is in town and will stop by the food bank tomorrow to help pack and sort food.  Young is in town for  his annual Stay Focused Football & Cheer Camp, which is part of the Usama Young Youth Foundation, and includes a series of events for families and youth.  His foundation is based here in the Washington metro region and in Orleans Parish in Louisiana, and offers interactive programs to children from single-parent homes and underserved communities. 

A graduate of Largo High School, Young will also bring students from Prince George’s County Public Schools to help volunteer at the food bank’s warehouse.  They will volunteer from 1 – 4 PM.